Linkin Park Sets Out to Be ‘Carnivores’ of Rock

'The Hunting Party' is certainly a unique title for an album, and when you tie in the fact that Linkin Park have named their summer trek the 'Carnivores' tour, there's definitely a deeper story to be told. Luckily, Mike Shinoda and Chester Bennington delve a little deeper into the subject in a new video that just premiered at Rolling Stone.

Shinoda explains the origins of the name, stating, "Last year I read a piece about Japanese culture … that was talking about how people there were concerned that the new generation of kids there were becoming herbivores. They were passive and they weren't going out and getting a job or going out and getting a girlfriend. They were sitting at home playing video games and waiting for stuff to come to them and they were worried about what was going to happen to their culture if there weren't any more carnivores."

He adds, "I thought what's going on in rock music is really the same thing. And I really connected with that on a deep emotional level because I was looking for something that was visceral and aggressive and I wanted to hear this certain kind of music and I couldn't find it. I had to look back to the bands that I listened to in the '90s." He cites bands like Refused, Helmet, Gorilla Biscuits and At the Drive-In as those who provided the type of energy they wanted for the new album.

Bennington says that it was time to rock out again, as the band was definitely looking for something to liven up their rock shows. "We can write 1,000 'Iridescent's,' and as great as that is, it's going to be boring if you put that out. With this album, it was the opposite. It was maybe that we need to consider toning a song or two down a bit," explains Bennington. "It's like a nuclear power plant for our live show."